Its not on the City Council agenda today but there’s a good chance a citizen or two may speak up during the public comment period about a controversial decision at the LAST council meeting, as WFIR’s Gene Marrano reports:

Governor Northam is now beginning to reappear in the public eye after the yearbook blackface incident. But its time for Northam to do more listening than speaking says a Virginia Tech professor, as WFIR’s Gene Marrano reports:

Roanoke City Council votes a week from tomorrow on a resolution to change the name of Jackson Park Branch Library and the adjoining park in Southeast to Belmont Branch Library and Belmont Park. This comes after the middle school name change last July from Stonewall Jackson Middle School. Prior to 1925, the park had been called “Belmont Park,” according to city archival records.

Roanoke City news release: On Tuesday, Feb. 19, Roanoke City Council will vote to adopt resolutions changing the name of the Jackson Park Branch Library, located at 1101 Morningside St. SE, to the Belmont Branch Library, and the name of Jackson Park, located at 923 Montrose Ave. S.E. and 1030 Penmar Ave. SE, to Belmont Park.

In July 2018, the Roanoke City School Board approved a name change of the former Stonewall Jackson Middle School, which is adjacent to the branch library and park. In response to Council’s interest in removing the reference to Stonewall Jackson and in light of the School Board’s decision, the city reviewed historic and archival information that revealed the Park was commonly known as “Belmont Park” prior to 1925, when the name of the middle school was established for Stonewall Jackson and then subsequently applied to the park and the branch library.

City Council action is necessary to change the names and to bring the name designations into better alignment with the city’s policy for the naming of libraries and parks, which have generally been named for the geographic/neighborhood of the areas they serve.

This proposal was reviewed by the Board of the Southeast Action Forum at its meeting on Jan. 29, 2019.

Hollins University wants students who may be pursuing liberal arts majors to be thinking more about turning that degree into a job – or a startup. WFIR’s Gene Marrano reports on a program just getting off the ground:

Former Roanoke County Attorney Paul Mahoney has announced his candidacy for the county’s Board of Supervisors. Mahoney says his 31 years as County Attorney — and his current work on the planning commission — give him a broad understanding of issues and challenges facing the county. Mahoney will run as a Republican in the Cave Spring District. Current Supervisor George Assaid is not running for re-election.

A Black History Month Celebration that honors the “Hidden Jewels of the Roanoke Valley” features a soul food lunch and awards. More on TAP’s “new twist” for a 3-decade tradition from WFIR’s Gene Marrano: